Originally charged with distribution of marijuana, G’ville man pleads guilty to an amended possession charge

Michael Turner pleaded guilty to an amended charge of possession of a controlled substance and operating a vehicle on a highway without a valid license. He was originally charged with felony delivery/distribution of marijuana. He was given a SIS and was placed on supervised probation for a term of 5 years. He was also fined $500 and ordered to show a valid driver’s license within six months.

According to the probable cause statement written by Ozark County Deputy Josh Sherman, around 10 p.m. Aug. 11, 2022, he was on scheduled patrol with the Ozark County Sheriff’s Department when he saw a vehicle driving erratically. 

“I observed a vehicle that was unable to maintain the correct driving path heading east on US Highway 160. I followed this vehicle from State Highway J junction with US Highway 160 and traveled east toward Tecumseh area. As the vehicle approached the top of the Tecumseh curves, the vehicle slowed to an estimated 35 to 40 miles per hour speed and then accelerated back to regular speed as the vehicle successfully navigated the first curve,” the report says. “At one point during the curves, the vehicle swerved into the westbound lane to avoid colliding with the eastbound shoulder guardrail. As the vehicle exited the Tecumseh curves I activated my emergency lights and siren to conduct a traffic stop for the erratic display of driving this driver was displaying.”

Sherman said Turner pulled over, and he approached the vehicle and asked for his driver’s license. Turner said his license was expired, the report says. 

“He indicated that he was swerving because he was attempting to reactivate his alcohol indicator interlock that was part of his vehicle’s system so he could continue driving to his destination,” Sherman wrote. 

The officer asked Turner to get out of the vehicle, as he was placing him under arrest for driving with a suspended license. He told the officer that there was about a half-pound of marijuana in a container in the vehicle’s floorboard, the report says. 

Sherman found a package that included a large amount of marijuana and a digital scale. It was later weighed at the sheriff’s department. It was 532 grams, the report says, or 1.17 pounds. In Missouri, state law charges possession of 32 grams or less of marijuana as a misdemeanor. Possession of over 35 grams qualifies the charge as a felony.